


The Bonsai Tree

by UvaSEP



Category: Harley Quinn (Cartoon 2019), Harley Quinn (Comics), Poison Ivy (Comics)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Protective Harley
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-20
Updated: 2020-03-20
Packaged: 2021-02-28 17:20:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 993
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23230843
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UvaSEP/pseuds/UvaSEP
Summary: In which Harley and Ivy have a movie night, and Harley meets a new friend
Relationships: Pamela Isley & Harleen Quinzel, Pamela Isley/Harleen Quinzel
Comments: 5
Kudos: 224





	The Bonsai Tree

Harley waltzed into the living room holding a wobbling tower of assorted snackage, whose stability was certainly not aided by her frenetic energy. She skipped over to the newly replaced table, tossing chocolate, gummy bears, and popcorn upon it like an Energizer version of the Easter Bunny.

“Hey Ive! I figured the traditional movie snack is popcorn so I grabbed some but then I wasn’t sure how you’d feel about them since they’re kinda literally little exploded corn babies so then I went to the store and found loads of junk food and I figured at least one of them had to work for you.”

She paused and cocked her head, finally stopping her stream of consciousness commentary long enough to register what Ivy was doing. “Ive… Are you… chopping up a plant?”

Ivy sat on the couch, brows furrowed as she snipped at the edges of the tiniest little tree Harley had ever seen. Ivy sighed and glanced up at her before returning her focus to the new plant. “No. Well, I mean yes, sort of. He’s a bonsai tree,” she said, gesturing at his small stature. She squinted as she snipped an unruly tuft.

Harley kneeled down to more closely examine this new specimen. “Aww, Ive, he’s so cute! Will he always stay so small?”

“Well, he doesn’t have to, but I asked him, and he said he liked his size, so I’m going to give him some regular pruning…”

“He can talk!?”

“Well no, not exactly. There are different tiers of communication to the plants I animate, and this one hasn’t made it to the ‘meeping’ tier, let alone the ‘English’ tier. It’s kind of complicated... but anyhow, yes, I can understand him.”

Harley rested her head against Ivy’s leg as she admired the bonsai tree. “Well can you tell him I think he’s just the cutest little thing?” she asked, lovingly pinching a branch. “From now on, this plant has the protection of Harley Quinn,” she proclaimed loftily. “And I shall defend him upon pain of death!” She banged her fist upon the table to formalize her decree.

Ivy gave an exasperated sigh, but it was tempered by a slight smile tugging at her mouth. “Oh I think he gets the idea. And I’m sure he appreciates the sentiment. And he would also appreciate it if you wouldn’t destroy the table he’s _sitting on_ ,” she said, drawing out her last statement for emphasis.

Harley jerked her hands behind her back. “Right, no breaking tables.”

Ivy smiled. “Thank you for your consideration.”

Harley returned her head to Ivy’s knee, finding the sensation strangely relaxing to her normally frazzled mind. She watched as Ivy’s fingers danced over the tree, inspecting a bough here, trimming a branch there. So graceful. Harley sighed and nuzzled closer, wrapping her arms around Ivy’s calf.

Ivy glanced down at her fondly, enjoying the warm sensation of having Harley close. She distrusted people by nature. In fact she had deliberately self-isolated herself behind emotional barriers of acerbic wit and feigned indifference. Yet Harley seemed to stubbornly scale all of the walls she had built up around herself. Ivy found her persistence oddly endearing. And rather than feeling exposed, Ivy felt a keen sense of security.

Her reflections were interrupted by Ivy poking at the closest branch. “Does he have a name? Oo, how about Arthur! Or Jack!” She turned to look eagerly at Ivy, who gave her a stern look.

“His chosen name,” she began in a serious tone, “…is Elmore.”

“Aww, look at little Elmore!” Harley cooed, stroking his little green tufts. “It’s like you’re giving him a haircut!”

“Mm, I suppose so.” Ivy looked down at Harley, still seated on the floor as she continued petting Elmore. “You know, you could join me up here?” She patted the couch cushion beside her.

Something sparked in Harley’s mind at the offer. Her eyes widened as she gasped, scrambling to her feet and giving an excited hop. “The movie! I almost forgot about the movie! Are you ready for a movie? Would Elmore like a movie? Has he ever seen a movie?” She began to pace around the room, stroking her chin with one hand. “We wouldn’t want to leave Elmore out. What kind of snacks would he like? What counts as a snack for a plant? Like… fertilizer? Time in a sunlamp? I’ve never really helped care for a semi-animated plant before…”

Ivy leaned back against the couch, smiling as she watched Harley’s enthusiastic brainstorming. No one had expressed much interest in her plants before, except as a kind of collection of freak show oddities. But here Harley was, passionately eager to learn.

“-and what about the actual movie itself? I was kind of thinking something like Avatar or Fern Gully might be nice… maybe that’s too on the nose…” She sighed dramatically and plopped down on the couch beside Ivy, gazing up at her expectantly. “What do you think, Ive?”

Ivy placed a hand on Harley’s knee. “I think Fern Gully would be lovely. And Elmore is just fine, he’s very low-maintenance really.”

Harley pumped her fist in the air and grinned. “Yes! This is gonna be GREAT!”

//

Evening faded into night, and the ambient glow of the television illuminated two figures on the couch. Ivy was comfortably sitting back against the cushions, an arm outstretched to wrap around Harley, whose head was peacefully tucked into her shoulder. She had never imagined someone so thoroughly intertwining their life with hers, but now she found it difficult to even imagine disentangling herself. Time passed so much more pleasantly with Harley, and Ivy felt an odd sort of, _pull_ towards her. Holding her close felt so _right_. She gently squeezed Harley’s shoulder, and Harley instinctively snuggled up to her, wrapping her arms around Ivy’s waist with a yawn. Ivy smiled in the darkness and softly kissed the top of Harley’s head.

She never wanted to let go.


End file.
